Implementing an appearance tab, hurts the crafting community. You will be able to get any look you want, and keep stats in line.
Every style of armor is available as Orange, customizable gear.
Yes 4 days before launch you may not get your look, but a few months in once the patterns become readily available the crafters will be kicking out the items people want.
This current system is the best of both worlds, it makes crafting useful, there will be demand for the things they make and it lets people pick how their characters gear looks.
Yes, you'll have to wait a bit for the economy in the game to get into swing. But in the end, I think this will be a great system for all involved.